


Meeting Katie Callum

by How_Doth_the_Little_Crocodile (orphan_account)



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Derek is a moron sometimes, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mentions of canon deaths
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-08-23
Updated: 2012-08-23
Packaged: 2017-11-12 18:43:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/494444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/How_Doth_the_Little_Crocodile
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Derek runs into one of Laura's old friends.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Meeting Katie Callum

“You look like someone just told you that Scott was prettier than you. Jeez, lighten up.”

“Stiles, just go get the damn movie.” Stiles easily dodged the swipe of the arm that was on a trajectory for the back of his head.

“All right, all right. Simmer down, Sourwolf.”

Stiles walked away from the Camaro and into the video store, shaking his head. It was Pack movie night, a weekly event suggested by Stiles to promote “harmony and bonded-ness” within their ranks. The fact that Stiles orchestrated the whole thing was probably the only reason Scott showed up but Derek took what victories he could. He also knew that it had recently turned into an effort on Stiles’ part to get Derek reacquainted with popular media, something that hadn’t really been on his radar since he lost Laura and had a murderous Alpha to find and new Pack puppies to train and…. Well, he hadn’t seen new movies for a while. And apparently no…. whatever he was to Stiles should be so lacking in knowledge of pop culture.

They had started with things Derek was familiar with: the original Star Wars trilogy, the Terminator 2: Judgment Day (the only one worth watching in both Stiles and Derek’s opinion, though Scott disagreed), and The Matrix. Then they had moved on to more recent things that Derek hadn’t seen, starting with Catherine Hardwicke’s _Red Riding Hood_. The entire Pack, plus Lydia (who wasn’t quite Pack yet but was on her way), had rolled their eyes collectively but didn’t bitch when Stiles snuggled himself under Derek’s arm, stating that it was a good movie. Derek’s lips had twitched in a smile but he just pressed Stiles into his side.

So he had learned to trust Stiles’ judgment when it came to movies when he realized he liked the vast majority of the ones that Stiles played for them. James Cameron’s _AVATAR_ and _X-Men: First Class_ had quickly joined his list of favorites after the Pack had watched them. This was why he was comfortable waiting by the car on a warm Friday afternoon while Stiles picked out the movie for that night.

Which was why he was alone when he heard a female voice call, “Derek?”

He turned to find a young woman who looked about 26. She smiled brightly as he faced her, sunlight catching the reddish tints in her brown hair as she moved closer. Derek then noticed the little girl, hanging onto her mother with one hand and the thumb of the other shoved into her mouth.

“I thought that was you! I heard you came back into town but I hadn’t seen you….” She trailed off as she took in the look of confusion he knew had to be on his face. “You don’t remember me, do you? I’m Natalie. I was friends with your sister.”

“Natalie King,” he said, nodding as comprehension dawned. He remembered her, all right. She had been Laura’s best friend through all of high school in Beacon Hills. They had spent all their time either at each other’s house or out at parties together. Remembering Laura happy and healthy and _alive_ sent the same shock of guilt and pain through his stomach that it always did but he managed to keep up the fake smile that had become standard when it came to socializing outside of the Pack.

“It’s Natalie Callum now,” she corrected, smiling and toying absent-mindedly with the ring on her left hand.

“Right, of course.” Of course she’d be married. Of course she’d have a kid. Of course she’d have the life his sister had been denied. Of course she’d be happy with her little white-picket fence life while his sister had become an Alpha at 18 when their parents were murdered, had had to take care of Derek when he lost the will to take care of himself, so wracked with guilt for letting that psycho bitch in enough to do such damage. She’d thrived and lived while Laura had struggled and died.

But he didn’t begrudge her that. He wouldn’t have wished Laura’s life on anyone. He was happy this sweet girl had escaped the tragedy that had befallen his family. Derek just wished that Laura could have had that life too. That’s what he told himself anyway, ignoring the splinter of hate that emerged when he thought about what she had and took for granted.

“I heard… about Laura. I’m so sorry.”

“Me too,” was all he was capable of saying before his throat closed up in that way that told him he needed to change the subject if he didn’t want to break down in the parking lot of Video 2C.

“Who’s this little one?” he asked, crouching down to the little girl’s level. That was what people did when encountered with babies, right? Asked about them? He wished Stiles had stayed outside or that he had gone in with him or something so that he wasn’t doing _this alone_.

“My daughter. Say hello to Derek, Katie.” The little girl pulled her thumb out of her mouth and waved her fist at him. His smile wavered when he heard the girl’s name. Katie. Kate. The woman who had taken _everything_ from him.

“How old is she?” he managed to ask with smile intact. The kid couldn’t help her name. It wasn’t like she was the one who had ruined his life.

“18 months,” Natalie answered. Katie let go of her mother’s hand and took a toddling step towards Derek, holding her hands out to him in the universal sign of “up”. He looked at Natalie, who smiled at him. “Go ahead.”

“Up!” Katie insisted.

He hesitated slightly before picking the little girl up gently and settling her on his hip as he stood back up like he remembered his cousin had done with her little boy Benjamin before the fire. Now he only had to focus on not dropping her. As soon as he picked her up and felt how light she was, it struck him exactly how fragile she was too. The last baby he had ever held had been Benjamin so out of practice didn’t even begin to cover it. He felt a little better, thought, when Katie patted his side with her little fist and said something that sounded like “Derc”.

Natalie laughed. “I think she’s trying to say your name! She’s not normally this friendly.” Derek had no idea what to say to that but luckily didn’t have to say anything.

“It’s his animal magnetism. No woman can resist him, even a mini one,” Stiles joked as he came out of the store, coming up behind Derek with a stack of movies in his hand. Most of the tension eased out of Derek’s body as he felt that familiar presence at his side. Stiles had beautiful timing. “Hi, I’m Stiles.” He held out his free hand to Natalie. She smiled and shook it.

“Oh, I know you. You’re the Sheriff’s kid. My dad’s a cop, David King. I’m Natalie.”

“Yeah, I know King. Nice to meet you. And who is this sweetheart?” he asked in a gentle voice as his whole demeanor changed, attention caught by Katie waving her fist in Stiles’ face. Derek actually almost sighed with relief when Stiles asked that. It was needed confirmation that he wasn’t as socially deficient as he sometimes thought he was. He had reacted to a baby correctly! It was ridiculous how happy that made him so he tried to tamp it down and actually pay attention to the conversation but by the amused look that Stiles had given him, it hadn’t gone unnoticed. Stiles had held out his finger to Katie and she had it gripped in her tiny little hand. He babbled at her and she giggled. “She’s so cute, she makes me want kids!” he said, laughing as he shook his finger lightly.

“Not at 17, you don’t!” she cried, laughing as well.

_Laura missed out on that too_ , Derek thought to himself. It was only when Stiles and Natalie both turned to him and gave him sad looks that he realized he had said it out loud.

“She missed out on a lot,” Natalie told him, “but she also experienced a lot of love in her life. She would have wanted all of that for you too, you know. Kids, love, the whole thing.”

“Exactly,” Stiles chimed in. He sent Derek a look that very clearly said “We will talk about this later and don’t even think for a second that we won’t”. They were silent for a while after that.

“Well, it was nice seeing you,” Natalie said awkwardly, with no way back from the dark abyss that his comment had opened in the conversation. She held her arms out to take her daughter back, Katie crying “Derc!” once more before allowing her mother to pluck her from the werewolf’s arms.

“You too,” Stiles said when he realized Derek wasn’t going to. Mother and daughter walked into the store while Derek handed Stiles the keys.

“Want to drive?” he asked, face blank and voice monotone. Stiles put the movies down on the hood of the car and threw his arms around Derek. He felt the tremors that wracked Derek’s whole body and just held on tighter. Derek allowed him to hold him for all of five seconds before ripping himself out of Stiles’ arms and getting into the passenger’s seat of his Camaro. Stiles grabbed the movies and got in the driver’s seat.

“I know that was hard for you-” Stiles began as they pulled out of the parking lot and onto the main road but Derek cut him off.

“Oh, you do?” Stiles tried to ignore the hateful tone, knowing that he was just hurting and shutting himself down, but it still stung. He knew that it was easier for Derek to get defensive and yell than to let someone in and listen. That didn’t stop his tone from pissing him off.

“Yeah, I do! You think it was easy seeing my mom’s friends after she died? Or seeing anything that reminded me of her?”

“Your mother got married and had you! Laura died before she even got to _live_!” His voice cracked on the word ‘live’ and Stiles took his eyes off the road to glance at Derek, who was looking out the opposite window resolutely. They drove in silence for a while before Stiles pulled over on the side of the road.

“It wasn’t your fault,” he told Derek, still looking out the front windshield. “You’re not responsible for Laura’s death.”

“You don’t know that.” His voice was hard, like he was trying to argue with Stiles.

“She made the choice to come back, Derek. You didn’t make her.”

“But I should have been with her!” Suddenly, he was shouting. “I shouldn’t have let her come back alone. If I’d been there-”

“Then you’d both be dead,” Stiles cut in quietly. “And Peter would have killed any and every person he felt like. He would have _turned_ whoever he felt like. It’s not your fault that she’s dead but it will be your fault if you waste the life that you still have. You have to live for her.” He looked at Derek for the first time since he pulled over the car. He had his hand on his forehead, his elbow resting on his thigh. “Look, I know that it’s hard. You lost your entire family. I can’t even begin to imagine that. But you’re rebuilding it. _We’re_ rebuilding it. You’re not alone.”

Slowly, Derek raised his head to look at Stiles, emerald eyes meeting amber. “I promise you, you’re not alone anymore,” he repeated, putting his hand palm up on the center console. Derek looked at, looked back up at Stiles’ face, and bypassed the hand, grabbing Stiles by the front of his shirt and smashing their lips together. Stiles was surprised but willing to go with it, hand coming up to grip Derek’s bicep just as Derek’s released his shirt and moved to the back of his neck. Derek pulled back and Stiles chased his retreating mouth automatically, not willing to let it end. Derek let Stiles catch him and the next kiss was gentler, slower. They broke apart for air, Stiles panting much heavier than Derek was. “The others were waiting for us,” Stiles breathed out, forehead pressed to Derek’s shoulder and his body twisted uncomfortably in the car seat. Derek ran a gentle finger down Stiles’ cheek as he pulled his hand back, a silent thank you because Derek had difficulty with words like that.

Luckily, Stiles was fluent in Derek.

**Author's Note:**

> So that happened. I'm so sorry. This is what happens when you have "What Hurts the Most" by Rascal Flatts on repeat while writing.
> 
> Thanks for reading.
> 
> Also, if you wish, you can spam my tumblr (duchesslyssie) with demands for a second chapter. I might be willing to oblige.
> 
> Peace, lovelies.


End file.
